


The Black Widow

by Risafi



Category: BanG Dream! Girl's Band Party! (Video Game)
Genre: Aged-Up Character(s), Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Explicit Sexual Content, F/F, Prostitute AU, Sex Education
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-07-15
Updated: 2020-07-26
Packaged: 2021-03-05 00:35:59
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 7
Words: 19,641
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25285495
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Risafi/pseuds/Risafi
Summary: Tomoe, Himari and Tsugumi are all school teachers and now live together due to Tomoe's contract being on rocky grounds. But after an encounter with a mysterious woman at a club one night, followed by a strange business card being found, Tomoe finds that getting her contracted full time back might need to be hurried up for her new expensive hobby...
Relationships: Mitake Ran/Udagawa Tomoe
Comments: 2
Kudos: 24





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> So this was entirely based on a prompt generator I was using for inspiration. At first I kind of laughed it off; then I actually had ideas come into fruition about how this would play out and then my curiousity got the better of me. This is more of a challenge story for me than anything; so if mature Au's aren't your thing then I would definitely wait for something else of mine to come out soon! 
> 
> If not, come sit back and relax and enjoy the show. Plus my finally writing the friendship Tomoe and Himari deserve from me

“Thanks for letting me move in. I promise once I get my form of income in more solid I’ll pay you back in rent.”

Tomoe and Himari dropped the last box in the spare room; now her room, and Himari wiped her brow.

“No sweat! Well, actually a little sweat, hehe. But it’s the least we can do for a best friend right? And don’t worry too much about the rent. Just make us yummy food in the meanwhile and we’ll be square! Right Tsugu?”

“Yeah of course!” Tsugumi came in after, bringing a smaller box to drop onto the larger one. “You’d do the same for us any day. Say, should we go out to celebrate tonight?”

“Celebrate on a Sunday night? Oooooh you’re so scandalous.” Himari laughed at Tsugumi’s looks of shock. “But agreed! We can deal with future us needing to deal with loud classes later.”

“I mean yeah, I don’t have to deal with it til Tuesday but sure, why not.” Tomoe shrugged. “First drink on me?”

“You said it! Now, let us let you get unpacked and we’ll organise food to have before we go out.” Himari waved her phone around, the Food delivery app already loading on her screen. “We’ll go to the club down the street.”

Tomoe gave a chuckle as she opened up her first box.

…

The three stood at a table, looking around at the scene unfolding on the dancefloor. Personal space was of no consequence to anyone, and neither was the dress code.

Himari opted for lowcut on short cocktail dress, hair out and wavy from her usual braid she wore during the week. Tsugumi went for the more covered dress, but slightly tighter. Her hair pinned up and the ends fanning out.

Tomoe went for the ripped jeans and tartan shirt slung over a boob tube; classic look for a twenty four year old Sport and Health teacher. Her hair was out in her usual untamed mane but glammed up with at least big earrings.

“Hey, is your woman here tonight?” Himari asked Tsugumi as they scanned the rest of the floor. She was met with a shake of the head in response.

“Nah, doesn’t look like it. It’s okay, she’s a dentist so probably doesn’t have time to get out.” Her demeanour seemed to go against her statement.

Tomoe pointed her pinky finger as she held her beer bottle. “Isn’t that her there? With the black haired chick?”

Tsugumi perked up, and stood on the balls of her feet to look over in the crowd. The woman turned around, and instantly saw the flustered brunette before waving and ushering her friend over.

“Oh shit, she’s coming here, what do I do?!” She squeaked, taking a huge swig of her drink.

“I’ll entertain her friend, ask her to dance or something!” Himari gave a laugh, smacking Tomoe on the arm. “What are you gonna do?”

Tomoe didn’t respond. Instead, she was looking over the crowd to the bar, where three beautiful women seemed to walk in, with a boyish looking woman in tow. She was particularly interested in the first woman; with sleek black hair trailing down to her waist. She seemed very out of place alongside the mass of people at the bar, but she seemed comfortable with her friends. And then she turned her head and their eyes made contact.

“Tomoe?” Himari blinked a few times, before looking in the same direction and smirking. She took the beer bottle out of her hand and gave her a playful shove. “Go say hi, ask her to dance. Dry hump her or something I dunno. Just go!”

Tomoe swallowed hard, and decided to make her way through the crowd. What she hadn’t intended was for the woman to meet her halfway on the dancefloor. They both awkwardly played with their hair, and Tomoe chuckled before leaning into her ear.

“Do you want to dance?” She asked loudly over the music, to which the woman nodded in response.

She grabbed the woman’s waist and pulled her in close, and they began to move into each other. She felt their bodies pressing up against each other as they moved in sync; the woman’s hips grinding against hers and her hot breath on her neck. Tomoe moved her nose to bump the woman’s face, and she moved back so they could rest their foreheads against each other. Soon she felt their lips mashing together, and in her tipsy state could feel how wet her lips were. Luckily, it didn’t seem to deter the woman from kissing her harder, and going as far as to probe with her tongue. Tomoe accepted the offer and opened her mouth wide enough to let her work her magic.

They broke apart after a few minutes; the woman not breathing as hard, and Tomoe just continued to hold her close. Once again she leant into her ear; letting impulse take her whichever way with the night. 

“Do you want to come home with me?”

…

Their kisses were feverish and sloppy as they shuffled through the apartment and to Tomoe’s room. Their soft moans complimented their shoes against the floorboards as they inched closer. Tomoe broke the kiss momentarily as they weren’t getting there fast enough.

“Jump up; I’ll just carry you the rest of the way.” She slurred slightly, suddenly questioning if she would be okay.

The woman complied, jumping up and clamping her legs around her waist. Tomoe gripped her thighs tightly and easily stalked through the rest of the kitchen, and into the tucked away room in a cornered hallway. She used her foot to close her door; on the offchance anyone noticed she had left early, and dropped the woman onto the bed with ease. She bounced a little, before taking her shoes off and grabbing Tomoe’s hips to drag her closer. One swift motion and her pants were undone.

She wriggled out of them, and the woman responded with lifting her dress over her head and tossing it to the side. Tomoe’s shirt was shrugged off, and she used her body to lean over her and pin her down into the bed. They continued to kiss; Tomoe began grinding on her once more to try and get the blood pumping more.

The woman had decided that she wasn’t satisfied being underneath; as she grabbed Tomoe by the arms and flipped them over with ease. From there Tomoe could only watch as the pool of black hair trailed lower, and lower, and then she felt the tongue between her legs. She threw her head back and cried out; teaching this stuff was a hell of a lot more different than actually experiencing it first hand.

Then she felt the tongue slide in, and she closed her eyes in pure bliss.

…

The smell of coffee was the key to waking Tomoe up. She hazily lifted her head from the pillow, eyes adjusting to the light as she scanned her room. It was a mess of her clothes strewn around, and she was tangled in her sheets but everything else seemed normal. She felt around beside her, only feeling the cool sheet. Guess she dreamt about that girl.

She moved a hand down and felt around herself; and guessed it was a _really_ good dream from her findings. And then she groaned; lucked out again. But she was convinced the woman was real; Himari even saw her, right?

“Morning slug.” Himari gave a laugh at Tomoe looking at her puzzled. “You were out cold when we got in. You hungry?”

“I am starving, and possibly delusional.” She scratched her head and took a seat at the end of the small dining table. “Was there anyone else here when you got in?”

“Nope, just you snoring your head off.” Tsugumi gave a chuckle. “We assumed you had come home early with someone so we let you have a bit of time to yourself.”

“I mean, I thought I did?” Tomoe turned to Himari. “You saw the girl from last night right?”

“The one you were basically fucking on the dancefloor? I know I said to but you didn’t have to go that hard.” Himari also gave a laugh. “You did leave with her though. Did she not come back with you?”

“Apparently not then. I must’ve dreamt that bit.” She sighed and uttered a small thankyou when a coffee was placed before her. “Sucks; she was very much my type. I mean from what I remember anyway.”

“Short, dark hair and perky tits? Yeah I called that.” Himari placed a couple of huge plates of pancakes freshly made on the table, followed by the condiments and utensils. She sat took her seat and the three began plating up. “But damn, she was really cute.”

“Agreed! Even Sayo and Rinko said those three made time stop when they walked in.” Tsugumi nibbled on the edge of her pancake like a squirrel. “Rinko was the other girl by the way; the dental nurse.”

“And my new shopping buddy.” Himari giggled. “Least we all got something out of last night right?”

Tomoe nodded into her coffee, taking a huge swig and letting it rush down her dry throat. “You guys have full days today?”

“I only have a half day; English for two classes.” Tsugumi licked her knife carefully. “Himari has the full day so I’ll hang around til she finishes.”

“Yeah, Home Ec. And Art classes for each form.” Himari sighed and took a sip of tea. “You’re gonna finish unpacking today?”

“Yeah I will. And I’ll do the washing. I have a few days worth I didn’t get to do.” Tomoe gave a yawn and rubbed her eye. “Maybe a bit more housework too. Something to keep me awake.”

“Well just know you don’t have to do everything okay? Just take it easy and work on your contract proposal.” Tsugumi finished her breakfast and stood from her seat. “Okay, we better get dressed and go.”

Both women bustled around, going for attire that was very much professional but still made it clear they were the younger sort of teachers. Tomoe waved them off like a tired housewife; closing the door and locking it behind her before going back to her bed momentarily to check if she’d grabbed dishes in her drunken state for water or something.

And then she noticed it on the floor, tucked under her bra.

A black wig.

_She was here!_ Tomoe choked on her noise and coughed a bit before diving down and scooping it up. Yep, it was definitely the same texture as the woman in questions. So she was concealing herself, but from what Tomoe wouldn’t even know where to begin. She had a hard enough time going food shopping without students awkwardly bumping into her and somewhat hitting on her, let alone what job would require a hair change to go out.

She decided to fold it into itself, and went the kitchen for one of the sandwich bags. Now she felt like she was bagging up evidence; but more to the point, if she ever saw her again she could at least prove she didn’t just throw it into one of her dressers without protection first.

But in the bottom drawer under her pants it was to be going; and staying there until the end of time. She grabbed her stuff off the floor from last night, and actually checked for dishes before coming back out to get to some work.

She dumped the clothes in the small laundry, doubled back to clear the table and do the dishes first. Then she wiped the table over; cleaned the kitchen up and then went to sort the clothes out.

She began throwing things into designated piles; delicates together, towels from the other two deciding to just let her wash everything and start new, and then she threw her jeans into a new pile.

A glint caught her eye on the floor, and there was a black business card. The glint was from a foil effect butterfly in the corner; blue with gold cursive writing next to it. She picked it up to inspect it, turning it over to see it blank. There was no phone number, no location, only the name.

The Butterfly Effect Booth.

Odd name, but Tomoe then suspected it was just a joke. She was pretty drunk last night, and there were heaps of people just randomly touching others so it probably was from that.

She decided against her better judgement to get her phone and google it anyway; and it took her right to a webpage with a convoluted question that required an answer in order to access the full site.

_What part of a butterfly can affect time and fate?_

She figured that it was easy enough for most people to access, but possibly just enough to lock certain demographics out. Either way, she knew the answer and decided to try her luck to investigate.

_The wings._

Instantly she was taken to the website; full address and all on display. Wasn’t too far from the house either. She decided maybe tomorrow night she could go and delve in a bit more.


	2. The kiss of death

“So to answer your question, bubblegum will stay in your stomach for a bit because the acids will have trouble breaking it down, but it’ll eventually be flushed out since its small by then. The story about it becoming a web and clogging your intestines is just a story parents use to discourage you eating it like candy.” Tomoe explained as if it was just something in her curriculum to teach a bunch of sixteen year olds that their parents were basically full of shit. They seemed to be interested; regardless of because they were too busy staring at her or actually listening in.

“Thanks for the info teach; you’re super smart.” The girl responded, hands cupping her chin.

“Sorry she steered the lesson away though. You wanted to start sex ed this week didn’t you?” Another girl stated flatly, seeming to be one of the few that was there to actually learn.

“I mean yeah that was the plan but I’m cool with getting those important questions out the way first so we can have a clear mind.” Tomoe gestured her hands outward, her notepad in hand and ready for her to actually begin the lesson. “So now that we’re all ready, who here actually has come across something about sex ed already?”

A couple of girls lifted their hands; one overly cocky as if to impress her teacher. Tomoe pretended that it went unnoticed. “Cool, well I guess it is. Depends what you actually know. So I’ll start with the preface of that I can’t stop you doing what you’re going to do; but please make sure you and your partner are at least legal, and that you’ve researched safe sex before jumping in okay? Now-“

“Have you had sex miss?” The cocky student suddenly had a sharp look, her face as serious as her question.

Tomoe faltered and raise her eyebrows; she checked the door hastily to make sure the principal hadn’t suddenly appeared to boot her from this school too. “U-Um, one. Not appropriate to ask me, and two. Not appropriate for me to divulge my private life to you as you’re all technically still underage.”

“Oh, so that’s a no then. That’s kinda cute.”

“That’s also in the not appropriate folder.” Tomoe pointed her notebook at the girl. “Read the laws about teacher and student relationships; it’s usually between the teacher and a jail cell.”

The class snickered as the cocky girl deflated. Least she didn’t persist…much. “So when is it legal?”

“Five years after you graduate, because by then you’re twenty one and therefore a complete adult ready to made better decisions than you do now.” Tomoe dropped her book on the desk to signify she was done with the rodeo of questions and moved to the front of the desk, leaning on it and pointing her attention away to the other side of the classroom; where it was less likely to attract the wrong attention. “So, there’s many ways to have sex; and it doesn’t have to be with a man either. But, you always have to be careful. Make sure you’re using protection, you’re cleaning regularly and you’re getting tested after each partner. Yes, girls can’t get pregnant from other girls but don’t think for a second that you can go at it scot free either.”

“Question; would you need to cut your nails before performing on a girl?” One other girl asked, blinking a few times in curiousity.

Tomoe pursed her lips and gave a few nods in surprise that it was a somewhat related question for once. “I would recommend you cut them regardless. Because for example, you might need to masturbate and well, do you want to cut your clitoris or risk having a nail chip off in you? Same goes for another girl.”

“You talking from experience?” The cocky girl seemed to gain her courage again.

It was going to be a long day.

…

She felt shady as hell, waiting for Tsugumi and Himari to go to sleep before quietly waking up; dressing in jeans and a hoodie and creeping out of the apartment. She figured that given the context of her destination; trying to conceal her face was a prime idea lest she run into students, or moreso their parents on the walk down the street. She figured that her contract would look swell should she be outed for her investigation.

She came to a normal looking building; the directions stated to walk into the tiny alleyway beside it. Once she had passed the emergency door, there was an even small alley to turn down. She saw steps and carefully walked up as to not make too much noise on the iron.

She opened the door carefully, and closed it before flipping her hood down. Considering how bare it looked on the outside; it was beautiful on the inside despite being tiny.

This place clearly brought in a lot of money.

The desk was curved; top was marble and gold lined. Acrylic on the bottom in the same brilliant blue as the butterfly on the business card. Violet lights gave off a lovely ambience against the red brick wall. And of course; signature fake plant by the edge near a velvet curtain covered window. A hallway was to the right; nine or so doors, each with a different LED light shining down before it. Only three seemed to be on however.

There was a woman at the desk; twirling a lock of her golden hair and seemingly absorbed in her computer screen. However as Tomoe moved closer, her brown eyes snapped to the newcomer and she seemed to perk up.

“Well hello there; you’re new.” She gave Tomoe a onceover before smirking and staring right into her soul. “And hot. How did something like you stumble here? Wait til the other half fell asleep before escaping?”

“O-oh, no no.” Tomoe waved her hands frantically. “I’m not like that. Painfully single and curious about the place. Found a card in my jeans and wasn’t sure how it got there.”

“Interesting! But hey, maybe this place might surprise you.” She took out a book and opened it to the current day. “So what are you wanting tonight?”

“Uhh…” Tomoe trailed off, feeling a little bit flustered and embarrassed that she didn’t understand the question. “I uh, I’ve never been to a place like this before, sorry.”

“Oh! No problems. Let me work some magic on you then.” The woman cracked her knuckles and leant on the desk. “What tickles your fancy with a woman then?”

Tomoe thought back to the woman at the club; the wig was throwing her off but she figured she would just describe her anyway. “Small, appears to be majestic or delicate but is easily flustered. Dark hair, but a deadly gaze.”

The blonde girl ran her finger on the book; moreso for the look rather than actually looking, then gave a huge smile while her other hand bustled around. She fished a key out; black tag, and dangled it at Tomoe. “This one will be perfect for you; The Black Widow. Door eight. If you want that key will access the lockers just on your right to lock your belongings away. Have fun~”

Tomoe took the key, looking at the eight engraved on the tag, before taking advice and taking her jacket filled with her spare key, phone and wallet inside and shoving it in the locker. She heard a low whistle, and in instinct she turned around with a bit of surprise.

“God, that muscle definition. She’s going to _love_ you.” The desk clerk said with a giggle. “I’m almost jealous. Almost; the master wouldn’t like it otherwise.”

Tomoe chuckled nervously. “I hope she does too.” She locked the small door, and adjusted her camo crop top and shuffled down the hall to the end. The red light was on; which now Tomoe knew meant who was available for a session.

She breathed in; and inserted the key slowly as if questioning if she was doing the right thing. But she was that far now; she opened the door and peered inside.

There was a lot of low light in red and purple; a huge heart shaped love bed in the centre of the room; velvet draping everywhere appropriate. Perched on the bed; a figure with her back to Tomoe, she seemed to be in a huge black stain garment covered in butterflies and golden swirls. Her hair was black, clipped up into a giant bow and decorative chopsticks with beads dangling off the ends.

“Close the door and come over here.” She said softly, and Tomoe complied as if in a trance. She took a few steps, and the woman shuffled a bit.

“Now, who do we have toni-“ She cut short as she turned around; her rose eyes locking with deep blue. Her red streak; the only part of her hair down, bouncing from her moving her head in slight surprise.

Tomoe’s eyebrows had disappeared well into her fringe. “Wait, you are real? I didn’t dream you up?”

The woman smirked in response. “The virgin from the club, right?”

Tomoe stammered and twiddled her thumbs. She was very taken aback by the comment and took a few moments to figure out how to respond. “…Is it that obvious?”

The woman patted the space beside her and continued to stare. “Come here, take a seat and relax.”

Once again, Tomoe didn’t know what it was about her, but she just followed instructions. She would argue that she was a bit too enthusiastic as she took a seat and sunk into the plush mattress. The woman adjusted herself so she was kneeling beside her; and she ran a finger up one of Tomoe’s thigh.

“So, what brings you here? To this palace of course.” She purred as she ran a hand over Tomoe’s exposed abs. “I have to admit, I did miss these.”

Tomoe gave a nervous chuckle and felt a tingle jolt up her spine. “I found a business card in my clothes, so I decided to investigate. Did you leave it behind like your wig?”

The woman hummed in response; moving her hand up gently to rub her hand against her body in a figure eight motion. “I might have. Did I do it so you would come to me specifically? Perhaps. You’re a good kisser.”

She removed her hand, and got up off the bed. The satin robe trailed behind her; the sleeves now looking more like butterfly wings. Tomoe merely looked dumbfounded as she made her way to a wall and started fiddling around with the many toys and instruments hanging off it. “What to do, what to do…You might want to get undressed while I get myself ready for you.”

Tomoe made no noise, but decided to untie her crop top, throw it to the floor and lift her hips as she undid her jeans and slip them off. She was probably glad she was wearing her fancy g-string and bralet given the position she was now in. In that time, the other woman had bent over and seemed to shimmy something up her legs but the robe covered pretty much everything.

“Okay, so when I turn around you better be in a position that it’ll still be a little bit fun.” She said gently, before turning around and noticing her awkward client sitting in the middle of the bed. She breathed out as her lip curled, and she made her way over gracefully enough to keep herself concealed. “Now that is more like it.”

She reached the edge, and crawled up and grabbed Tomoe’s shoulders gently. She guided the larger woman down to lay back, and began kissing and nipping at her collarbone. Tomoe hitched a breath and gave a moan as she felt hands roaming around her waistline and trailing down her hips. Nails sunk into her thighs and she gave a gasp.

“Love bites; is there a restriction?” The woman stated softly; Tomoe assumed her hand was down under the robe for some reason relating to the wall, but she couldn’t see much beyond satin.

“As long as a long sleeve button up shirt can cover I will be fine for work.” She muttered in a nervous tone. The unnerving feeling of not knowing what was happening was starting to play on her mind.

She heard the rip of foil, and tried to lift herself up to watch. However, a hand shot out and pushed her back down. The woman shook her head with a smirk as she finished whatever she was doing; she grabbed Tomoe’s knees and pushed them apart. “Don’t worry, I’m going to look after you. I want you to relax though or it’ll be more uncomfortable. After all, I want you to come back after this.”

“Sorry; I just wanted to know what we were going to be doing first off the bat.” Tomoe laid back; her hair sprawling all over the bed and her eyes focusing on the dim lights. “It’s not that I don’t trust you; you’re the professional after all.”

“Of course, I know what you mean.” The woman grabbed the string and moved it to sit to the side, and she began using her finger to rub around and prepare her. “I have a few things I can do, but using a strap first will get you used to the basic action first. I promise I’ll be gentle with you.”

Tomoe nodded and closed her eyes; she focused on the feeling of having someone else touch her and she felt hot in the pit of her stomach. Shortly after, she felt the brushing of satin covering her entire lower half, and she opened her eyes to see the woman hovering over her and adjusting the robe away as she positioned herself. Tomoe felt something pressed against her entrance; and then slowly it was pushed in. She gave a noise as she felt a tiny sting, and the action was stopped momentarily. She felt fingers spread around, pushing her lips outwards to open her up a little more. And then she felt it go in more, and she closed her eyes as she breathed a bit harder.

It seemed that her noises and twitches from her body were being listened to; and she felt leather pressed up against her hips after a couple minutes of adjusting. Then she felt the woman pulling back; and then pushing back in.

Tomoe gave a soft moan as she felt the strap moving in and out of her; the satin sleeves brushing against her body as the woman hovered over her and thrust slowly. Soon she hissed as teeth sunk into the part just under her collarbone; and the thrusting sped up.

“Un! F-fuck…” Tomoe put her arms up near her head and gripped the sheets; the momentum of being thrust into was increasing, and a spot she could never reach herself was getting knocked softly. “H-harder...please, harder!”

The woman said nothing, but responded to the request. Instead she moved to another part of Tomoe’s torso and bit down once more. Tomoe now felt no shame in crying out as her spot was hit over and over again. The feeling was insane and incredible all at the same time; whether or not because she’d never done it before was debatable.

It seemed like hours she was being tortured by waves of pleasure; before she finally felt a knot in the pit of her stomach. She could only cry out with every thrust as her sense of speech long left her, and when she felt the knot unwind, she threw her head and arched her back as her whole body began to shudder uncontrollably. The thrusting was kept on and was relentless, but once Tomoe had dropped back into the sheets did it finally stop. She was breathing heavily; lids tightly closed and beads of sweat were all over her. She could feel tingling everywhere; and moreso once she felt the strap being pulled from her body. Her legs collapsed under the feeling, and she opened her eyes to see the woman leaning down for a kiss.

There was a lingering feeling on her lips as they broke away, and Tomoe felt her lids grow heavy. Her eyes rolled back and she slumped into the sheets.

…

Tomoe gave a groan as she began to come to, feeling a nice sensation on her head. Her vision slowly cleared and she was looking directly up at the face who had sent her on the wildest ride possible. She was smiling, and looking down at her. The feeling on her scalp was her fingers massaging her, and her head was in her lap.

“How long was I out for?” She asked groggily, still feeling a slight tingle on her lips. “What did you do to me?”

“Well, I have to have something representing my name right? Black Widow represents the end; so it’s a play on a kiss of death so to speak. And no, I won’t divulge how I do it. That takes the fun out of my gig.” She continued her finger massage. “It’s only been about ten minutes. Enough for you to be completely relaxed and refreshed to not stumble out of here.”

“Does everyone get this kind of aftercare?” She quizzed.

“No. Just you. You’re a special one.” She made one last movement before taking her hand away. “I hope that it was okay. I do want you to come back.”

“Yeah, it was really good.” Tomoe slowly leant up, and turned to look at her closely. “I would love to come back. Do you alternate nights?”

The woman flashed a smile in response.

…

She had been told that getting the number of her ‘teacher’ as they dubbed her was apparently not a thing that happened either; but she had felt comfortable enough to do so anyway.

_“List me under bae or something casual. Just in case you’re at work or with people who don’t know.”_

Tomoe had thought it was the most odd situation she had ever been in. Hell even a casual buddy she tried to have wasn’t this casual and fast pace as this one. She still didn’t even know her name other than to be referred to as Widow. She had said none of the girls beyond close friendships knew each other beyond codenames, and sometimes they themselves were put on desk duty so it would make the reception a lot easier.

And she herself was like a black widow in a way; even down to her hair colour. Tomoe figured that was her true hair; she found it cute their red matched.

She shook her head furiously as she got back to the apartment. They were dealing in a business together. Nothing more. She wouldn’t get attached; as far as she knew this woman already had someone to go home to.

She gave a sigh after reaching her bedroom as quietly as possible and slumped down in her own, cold bed. She felt strange. She was conflicted; on one hand, she had found the girl she thought was exactly her type again in a chance meeting. But on the other hand; she’d officially lost her virginity to a mere prostitute who saw her as nothing more than a set of abs, a nice mouth and a lovely wallet.

But that wasn’t going to stop her going back for more.

Her phone vibrated in her hand, and she inspected it. The name ‘Bae’ flashed across the screen.

_“Just wanted to make sure that your travels home and sneak attempt was successful. I hope to see you again soon._ ”

Tomoe responded and said she was looking forward to it and she smiled a little bit. It was nice getting VIP treatment even with all the unknowns surrounding the situation.

Now to try and hide it from Himari and Tsugumi.


	3. Bites

She had been seeing Widow for about three weeks now.

Every encounter seemed to get more intense; and the longer she seemed to be asked to stay. They would chat about basic things; names and Tomoe’s place of work was not something of discussion just yet. Tomoe felt something different with her; and yet she just had to tell herself it was because she was lonely and nothing more.

Like now; their fifth? Or possibly sixth appointment; they were laying together in their underwear. Widow was trailing her finger up and down her arm affectionately. Only it probably wasn’t; she still had to remember that this woman left to go home to a girlfriend or wife.

“You’re getting more bold with the biting.” Tomoe said finally, breathing out a bit harder than usual. “I may not have work tomorrow but you’re skating on thin ice.”

“I’m sorry. But you’re getting a lot better so I’m letting my horniness get the better of me.” Widow grabbed Tomoe’s arm; moving it over her head so she could shuffle closer and cuddle in? Was this even a thing they did with clients? “Say, when we’re like this; will you call me by my real name?”

“Where did this come from?” Tomoe blinked a few times; loosely placing a hand on her shoulder.

“I feel like we can trust one another with that kind of information; don’t you?” She lifted her head, the beads from her chopsticks jingling. “I want you to call me Ran when we’re alone.”

“Ran…it suits you a hell of a lot more.” Tomoe resisted the urge to just pull her in and kiss her. “I can do that for you.”

“And yours?” She blinked a few times, looking expectantly.

“Tomoe; it’s Tomoe.”

Widow; no, Ran cocked her head and gave a small smile. “That’s an interesting name. But I’ll look forward to using it.”

Tomoe finally gave a smile back. “Let me guess; this is all part of the VIP treatment. Isn’t your other half going to get jealous?”

Ran seemed to almost take offense to the comment, and sit up with a strange look on her face. Tomoe also sat up instantly with full intention to apologise; when she saw Ran’s face soften once more and fall back to her default face. “Is that why you’ve been resisting me so far? Because you think there’s someone else?”

“Well you’re absolutely fucking beautiful so I find it extremely hard to believe otherwise.” Tomoe gently placed her hand on Ran’s back and rubbed gently. “I thought I offended you for a minute there.”

Ran shook her head. “No, I was just surprised that you would even think of anything beyond me just servicing women all night for work.” Tomoe felt a small twinge in her heart at the comment. “I can see it on your face. Yeah, people do find it difficult to date us. It’s not impossible, but hard. Only one of us has so far considered leaving to pursue the married life; but her wife is surprisingly fine with her working here til she doesn’t want to anymore.”

There was a soft knock on the door; and Ran got up to open it carefully. As if she was summoned; another one of the girls swept in, her lemon robe following her like a gigantic tail.

Tomoe shuffled around to at least put her pants on in embarrassment; she realised it was one of the other women from the fateful night at the club. The woman flicked her pale hair and gave a giggle in response.

“You must be the one Widow here talks about each week.” She give a grin that seemed very dangerous and placed herself on the bed. “I hope I didn’t interrupt anything.”

“We had finished; thankfully.” Tomoe however didn’t make a move to put her shirt back on. “Look, if you need to hide out here I can leave-“

“No of course not! I can go hide out somewhere else instead if you want to.” The girl began to remove herself from the bed; Ran had since put her robe back on in the meanwhile.

“No, it’s okay to stay here. But I don’t understand why you would want to; your regular is gorgeous.” Ran then shuffled to Tomoe and placed hands on her shoulders firmly. “Of course, I think mine is the best.”

Tomoe felt her heart skip a beat at the compliment; and the implication of ownership. She guessed it was just because this was the first human in a while that she was relying on for intimacy; but perhaps she was letting too much go to her head.

The other girl kept her grin on as she sat back down. “Well at least we all know not to ask to share. She wouldn’t take mine off my hands either.”

“I still think you’re being slightly dramatic over her.” Ran had, possibly subconsciously gripping Tomoe’s shoulders harder as they spoke. “So, for context. This is Honeybee. And a woman who we thought was a feminine man came one evening. And she fell in love instantly. And now Honey wont take her up on any offers.”

The woman known as Honey rolled her eyes. “She was texting other women during one of our sessions; as in during. And then had the audacity to come by with an engagement ring the next time she came around. The ring was denied and I made sure she staggered out of here once I was done with her.”

Tomoe gave a small chuckle and shook her head. “If she comes back after a rough punishment then I’m inclined to agree. Maybe if you say yes she might stop sexting other people.”

Honey looked between the two; and sighed before getting back up for the second time and moving to the door. “Fine; one chance. But if she does it again I’ll demand you take her up as a client.”

Ran gave a chuckle as her door closed, and she turned her attention back to her guest. “I’m sorry that we had that interruption. And as much as I want you to stay; I’m actually finished for the night.”

“Oh god, of course. I’m now that guy.” Tomoe waited for her shoulders to finally be released before getting up and finally fishing for her shirt to put on. “You should’ve kicked me out before so you wont be held up.”

“It’s okay, really. I don’t mind.” Ran shuffled over to the door and opened it for her. “There’s a reason I text you such late hours you know.”

Tomoe stopped infront of her, and gave a smile. “Really? That makes me feel slightly better then. I was worried I was taking away potential money away.”

Ran shook her head and grabbed the front of Tomoe’s shirt gently. “Here, something for the road.” She pulled her down to give her a soft kiss on the lips. “Be safe going home okay?”

…

Oh.

Oh no.

This was really bad.

Tomoe stood in front of her closet door mirror the next morning in just her underwear; and the bruising from the previous night was a lot more prominent than she expected. She was glad that she wasn’t going to work, but she was also still shocked that she would ever be a position like this. She felt like a teenager sneaking around behind her parent’s backs.

“Hey Tomoe, did you want a co-OH MY GOD WHAT THE FUCK IS THAT!”

She screamed and jumped into a defensive position from Himari’s sudden outburst; her hands trying desperately to cover as much as possible knowing damn well her friend had seen it all. Her phone went off beside Himari’s ear on her chest of drawers, and her noseyness made her swipe it up and look.

“Bae? Who is this? Did she do this to you?!” Himari kept looking at the screen. “Hey I loved last night, here’s my schedule for the next time.”

Tsugumi had since appeared in the doorway, and let out a huge gasp in response. “Oh my god, did you get beaten up or something?”

Tomoe huffed and shoved a hoodie on in a haste, and swiped the phone before Himari found out her password. “I’ve been seeing someone on the downlow alright? I just didn’t want to make a big deal out of it because well, you’ve now seen why.”

“I thought we were besties!” Himari pouted. “Why didn’t you say so? When can we meet her? Is she the girl from the club?”

“Woah, slow down. It’s nothing serious. Just…it’s just sex okay?” Tomoe sighed as she shoved on some sweatpants. “I’ve been needing it severely. Stress release. The whole not having a huge income is really getting to me.”

Tsugumi walked in and gave her a hug. “I know it’s hard. I’m just glad you’re not hurt at all. Come on, we can have breakfast and then go food shopping.”

Tomoe perked up at the idea. “Sounds good; I’ve been watching cooking shows for more ideas.”

…

Tsugumi opted to clean out the kitchen while the other two went to the supermarket. Tomoe was on trolley duty and Himari had the list.

“Right! So let’s go get the fresh stuff and work our way through. Boy it’s the week we’ve used up everything.” She stated optimistically.

“Sorry, me being at home a lot is probably lifting the cost of it all.” Tomoe gave a slight deflated response as she pushed the trolley towards the fresh vegetables. “I’ll make bulk if that helps?”

“It would be a god send if you did. Shitty cafeteria food isn’t my kind of diet.” She began grabbing a couple of bags from the dispenser and inspected the tomatoes before bagging them. “How’s the proposal going anyway? It’s due soon right?”

“Just have the closing statement; get Tsugu to do a once over and then I can hand it over and hope for the best.” She yawned as she leant on the bar, watching Himari place it all in the end and moving to the next display. “Failing that I’ll get another job to tie in the other days I guess.”

“Just as long as you don’t burn out; that’s all we really care about.” Himari looked sympathetically before gesturing with her head for them to continue. “And honestly we aren’t expecting you to pay anything while you’re with us. You’re our best friend and we love you.”

Tomoe sighed in defeat and nodded. “Fine, fine. I know I’m not gonna win this one with you.”

She looked up as Himari giggled and turned to the aisle looking through the cans, and she felt her . eyes bulge.

Ran was at the other end of the aisle; basket on her arm and seeming heavily invested in a bag in her hand. She seemed so normal compared to how she usually saw her. Next second, the woman looked up and straight down the aisle; copying the look Tomoe had. But the next action was unexpected; she actually walked down and came to stand beside her.

“Didn’t think I would see you this soon.” She mused quietly, the item being slipped into her basket as they kept eye contact.

“I didn’t expect to see you like this either yet here we are.” She smiled and bit her lip. “Sorry, it’s just…odd seeing you like this.”

“It’s fair. I don’t usually like getting dolled up for shopping days.” She finally gave Tomoe the once over. “Nice outfit; why haven’t I seen this one yet?”

“God I turn around for five seconds and you’re chatting someone up. Isn’t texting one enough?” Himari had come back to find Tomoe in a state of shock; almost forgetting Himari had seen her phone. Ran seemed calm as ever.

“Oh, did you see my text this morning?” Tomoe inwardly sighed in relief and groaned at how perfect she was at the same time. “I’m the bae in question. We just wanted to keep it to ourselves you know?”

Himari’s eyes lit up and she got excited. “God you’re adorable too; I can see why she wants you all to herself. But regardless; why don’t you swing by for dinner tonight if you aren’t busy?”

Tomoe wanted to sink in the floor then and there. She felt so embarrassed on Ran’s behalf, who either didn’t seem to notice that part or was just being too polite. “Oh, well if you’re inviting me then I guess it would be rude to refuse. I’ll bring wine just so I’m not empty handed?”

“Sounds good! Tomoe can text you the address; say eight?”

“That part is okay; she’s been to our place before.” Tomoe gestured to Ran’s face; devoid of makeup. “Club girl, remember?”

Ran gave a small smile as Himari guffawed and then got more excited. “Yeah, I’ll be there then. Enjoy your shopping.”

Tomoe could only watch as Ran walked off; and she felt the web that had somehow been spun on her heart begin to squeeze.

She was in trouble now. 


	4. Conflict

Tomoe jumped at a knock on the door around six; bustling over to open it and greet as soon as possible so she can jump back onto the stove.

On the other side of the door was her ‘date’ so to speak; Ran was waiting patiently with a wine bottle in a gift bag in hand. She seemed to have dressed up a little bit; but not to the extent she usually would. She was smart; nothing on her looked overly expensive or flaunty.

“Glad you could make it; the other two are at the gym.” Tomoe flashed a grin and let her inside. “Figured that inviting you over isn’t overstepping is it?”

“Not at all.” She placed the bag on the counter gently, and went to Tomoe’s room to place her purse. “It’s not like I was going to be doing anything beyond binging tv anyway; so I’d rather be here.”

“Also, I want to say sorry for tonight. I know it’s not something you really do and my friends are a bit nosey.” She felt arms snake around her waist from behind. “Himari might grill you for info.”

“It’s fine, don’t apologise. If I was uncomfortable I would’ve declined the offer. Instead I spend the afternoon thinking about how to approach her when she asks.” Ran placed her head against Tomoe’s back as she kept hugging her. “May as well play the part well, right?”

Tomoe nodded in response as she stirred a pot delicately. “I’m making a mix of stuff tonight if that’s okay? End of every week we just have multiple things and you pick at whatever you want.”

“Anything is fine; you invited me here after all.” She squeezed her arms a little tighter. “I’m hoping they can’t tell what an expensive wine is from a cheap one.”

“How expensive are we talking?”

“Honestly probably a month of an average person’s wage.”

Tomoe stopped and looked over her shoulder. “I hope you pay that for the taste and not because of the fact its expensive.”

“Bit of column A and a bit of column B.” Ran finally released her hold and slid around to the side. “Is there anything I can do to help you out?”

Tomoe shook her head. “Not particularly; everything is pretty much ready to go for the next couple of hours honestly. This just needed a couple of stirs and its good to sit for a bit.”

Ran rubbed Tomoe’s arm gently. “Well that’s alright then. What should we do in the meantime?”

Tomoe pursed her lips; and dared to pursue her train of thought. “Well…the others wont be back til about seven thirtyish, so we are alone for that long…”

Ran gave a coy look and ran her hand down to link into Tomoe’s; she started to tug her towards her bedroom slowly. This was going beyond their arrangement now, and Tomoe considered stopping it. But she didn’t want to; she had her in a normal setting, a woman willing to spend time with her for the sake of her friends.

“I think it’s safe to say that we’re beyond a business transactionship now.” Tomoe said as she was pushed onto her bed playfully.

Ran straddled her lap and unbuttoned her blouse slowly. “I would hope so. We could be upgraded to friends with benefits given our circumstances.”

Tomoe pulled her hoodie off and flicked it to the side. “I like that compromise a lot.” She grabbed Ran’s face and pulled her into a kiss, feeling hands cupping her bralet covered breasts as they urged one another to keep going.

They broke apart; Tomoe sliding her sweatpants off as Ran sat up on her knees to unclip her skirt and pull it off that way before going back to their heated kissing and fondling. Tomoe decided to dare to unclip Ran’s bra as they leant back on the bed; she complied by flicking it off and hovering over. A hand made its way down into her underwear; and then Ran made no attempts to wait and began thrusting her hand relentlessly. Tomoe gripped her shoulders hard; she panted as she moved her mouth to take a nipple and suck on it hard.

Ran made a noise; and began making any effort to bring Tomoe to come quicker. She wasn’t in the mood to play games, specially on the off chance that the others came home early.

Tomoe let go of her breast and gave a loud moan to signify she was close to the edge. They had done this same thing multiple times already; and yet every time it felt so different. Tomoe definitely felt like she had fallen in so deep and wasn’t sure if she wanted to be pulled back out of it.

She twitched as she came, feeling herself tighten and convulse around Ran’s fingers. Ran pulled out from her and did something she had never done before; she looked at her fingers for a moment, and then with her other hand pulled her underwear away from her body so she could use the same hand she had just fingered Tomoe with to do herself. She panted and moaned as she hovered over Tomoe’s body; the taller woman looking both in pure shock and absolutely turned on at the sight.

Ran finished herself with a cry, doubling over and leaning her head on Tomoe’s abs as she felt herself come shortly after.

“Fuck…” Tomoe said as they both slowly recovered from their episode and Ran chuckled through her large breaths. “I don’t think I’ve seen anything hotter than that in my life.”

“To date you mean.” Ran pulled her hand out, and lean in for a soft kiss. “There’s so much more I could do that you wouldn’t be able to wrap your head around.”

Tomoe went red and looked away sheepishly at the mere thought. “I don’t know whether I should be curious or terrified at the thought.”

Ran shortly slid off her and the bed, and began to re-dress herself. “Well, that was fun; but I think we should actually do something that wont get you into more trouble than it’s worth.”

“Yeah, good point.” Tomoe hopped up too; but stopped at her dresser. “I’m gonna…change my underwear. Are you good or want something else?”

…

Himari and Tsugumi came home; seeming to have used the extra time to shower and come home rather than the opposite. When they opened the door, they were met with a lot of smells and they both got excited. They shuffled into the shared kitchen and dining space to see Tomoe bustling around the bench and sorting out plates; whereas another woman was setting the table and seeming to be making animals with their serviettes. She looked up and seemed to get a bit flustered with their eyes scanning everything.

“H-hi.” She said softly; moving over to them as they dumped their gym bags at the door to greet her. “I’m Ran; Tomoe’s friend.”

Tomoe stopped and looked back at her using he own name; and she wondered if it was a poly to get on their good side or if she herself had been duped. Himari and Tsugumi however seemed to be quite enthusiastic about greeting her.

“Nice to officially meet you.” Tsugumi took her hand and shook it gently. “Himari did try to describe you to me but she didn’t really do you justice; you’re gorgeous.”

Ran faltered as she took her hand back; she didn’t seem to be used to the compliments. “O-oh, thankyou…”

“No, thank _you_ for keeping our buddy’s head on straight.” Himari winked and moved over to the table. “This looks amazing; did you do all this yourself?”

“I did; I figured if I was invited earlier to help that I make the most of it.” Ran wrung her hands as Himari ogled the flowers in the center of the table.

“Did you do this yourself?”

“I did. I uh, used to do flower arranging as a child before moving out here.” She shuffled over to Tomoe in slight embarrassment as the other two took a seat so they could look more. “Your friends are too nice, I can’t handle it.”

Tomoe laughed and wrapped an arm around her shoulders. “I told you. Do you mind helping me move these to the table since you insisted on helping me all this time?”

A couple of minutes was spent running plates to the table; and then Ran placing half filled glasses of wine for each of them before they all sat down to tuck in and eat. They began cutting and passing plates around to make sure everyone had a piece of each dish; chicken, beef, vegetables, egg and noodles dishes before they all began their first few bites.

“So, that night, did you actually come here or did Tomoe dream you into existence?” Himari mused with a grin before popping a bit of stewed carrot in her mouth.

Ran made a motion with her head as if to try not choke on her mouthful. She placed a hand over her mouth to swallow before speaking. “Um, well I did but I felt bad being here when you all woke up. And it was kind of chance we met up again. I don’t know what it was but usually I don’t want to pursue more with a one night stand due to my jobs. I just usually don’t have time but this seemed different.”

“That makes sense. So may I ask what you do?” Tsugumi enquired; albeit not as aggressive as Himari.

“During the day I’m a receptionist and during the night I’m in a VIP lounge at a club. So not much room for a social life.” She looked down at her plate as she felt Tomoe eyeing her off.

“That sounds hectic.” Himari took a swig of wine and savoured the taste. “This is good too; really nice choice.”

“I like to think I’m full of nice choices.” Ran stole a glance at Tomoe before hiding her creeping smile with her own glass. Tomoe flushed pink and decided to busy herself with her beef.

…

“Thank you so much for tonight. You were an absolute saint to be that patient with them honestly.”

Tomoe held Ran’s hand gently as they walked down the street together; she had insisted on walking Ran home despite them not living too far away from each other. Ran shrugged in response.

“It’s honestly no big deal. And I know first hand that it’s hard for people to grasp that their loved one is seeing someone controversial. A lot of times the friends kind of talk them out of seeing them once they know. And I would want to hope that if you had that mindset it was yours, not theirs.”

Tomoe felt her heart twitch at the sentence; and then a sense of dread sink in. “Yeah…that makes sense. There’s the stigma of normality when it comes to seeing people; serious or not.”

They fell silent once more as they continued to walk; but moving a little slower to let their time linger.

“So I assume from the conversation that you’re a teacher too.” Ran decided to break the silence. “The wanting to have bites covered makes a whole lot more sense too.”

“Yeah, I teach sport and heath education.” She responded softly. “But it’s why I’m stressing about money; I only work twice a week and in the process of pleading my case to take over full time. They have two teachers but want to cut one of us at the end of the month. And you’ve heard me whine about feeling guilty for seeing you; despite the tab being open.”

“Don’t feel bad about that.” Ran was quiet in her approach, as if a warning that she didn’t want it public knowledge. “What if I told you that the tab didn’t exist?”

Tomoe stopped and turned to look at Ran with concern. “Wait, what did you say?”

“The tab doesn’t exist. I just told you that so you wouldn’t feel bad.” She lowered her gaze in half embarrassment and half shame. “I made arrangements to start earlier so I could fit more clients in so I can have you in for free. I know it seems a bit weird but I feel like the club is the most safest place for us to get together so frequently. Also, I felt bad taking money from you when you said you were struggling as is. And your friends seemed so nice from when you told me about them after the second session so I felt like I was taking advantage of them.”

“Ran, Christ why would you do that?” Tomoe felt bad rather than good about the arrangement. “What if you get sick? Or hurt yourself?”

Ran chuckled and placed her finger over Tomoe’s lips. “Hush, I work at a business; the owner is very kind and doesn’t let us work outside our means and skills. Not to brag but I’m the best they have.”

Tomoe felt another twinge. Jealousy? She wasn’t too sure. But now she was starting to see where the shortfalls of trying to pursue a woman of the night. She was then amazed at the supposed wife of the friend being okay with her still working.

“This is me by the way.” Ran gestured to a gate with a dirt path just a few steps ahead of them. “Will you be okay to walk home on your own?”

“Yeah, don’t worry about me.” Tomoe smiled at her once more to reaffirm herself. “I’ll talk to you soon alright?”

Ran didn’t let go of her hand, but nodded back. “Rather; if you haven’t already got plans, come see me tomorrow night? Same time?”

Tomoe gripped her fingers a little more and gave a nod. “Of course. Let’s do that for sure. I’ll see you then.”

…

Tomoe got back to her apartment and had felt conflicted about everything. She was sure that she was just imagining her feelings, but then they were there. But now that jealousy and the like were starting to surface she was unsure of whether she should keep going. Ran had unintentionally planted a seed of doubt in her; and she had to wonder if it was unintentional the more she weighed it up. Ran after all had to protect herself; and Tomoe getting too close could compromise her safety.

“You guys are still up?” Tomoe noticed Himari and Tsugumi sitting at the table with coffee and tea in hands.

“Yeah we figured that we at least made sure you walked in the door.” Tsugumi took a small sip of her coffee. “Did you want one?”

“I’ll make it, it’s fine.” Tomoe moved to the kettle and began to set up a cup for herself.

“Thanks for tonight too. It was clear you did a little more to impress your friend. Mind you she seems to be worth the effort.” Himari added.

“She is.”

“She almost seems too good to be true too.”

“Yeah she is, isn’t she.”

“She’s a hooker isn’t she.”

Tomoe stopped dead, and turned around slowly to see both her friends staring back expectantly. How did they know? “Uh, fine. She is.”

“We figured as much. Not that it takes away from her! You gotta do what you gotta do to get by.” Himari made it clear she wasn’t intending to sound so judgemental. “Just, was she pretending to be interested in you more than a chance meeting or is she into you more than you’re into her?”

“I-“ Tomoe stopped in her sentence; because now she wasn’t even really sure. She made her coffee and came to the table to join her friends. “I don’t even know. I mean, she admitted tonight that she hasn’t been charging me because she felt like she would be taking advantage of you guys. But it then made me feel worse thinking I had a tab when I could be using the money to help you out.”

“We already said the money isn’t an issue to us. But we knew something was up because you insist on spending more on food after you sneak out and see her. And yeah, you’re not as quiet as you think.” Tsugumi gave a giggle. “But we didn’t mind because she at least seems to be keeping you in high spirits, regardless of how. We just want you to be sure that you’re both feeling the same thing.”

“That’s just it. Before tonight I was sure that maybe it could be something more. I mean technically we are friends with benefits. But now I’m not so sure. I feel like maybe I’ve projected the attachment onto her and she isn’t as invested. But the conflict of not making it a business meeting is where there’s the shred of hope.” Tomoe sighed and ran a hand through her hair. “I’m going to see her tomorrow night and test the waters I guess but, I don’t know how to tell if it’s real or not.”

Himari bit her lip. “I don’t know if it would work for you; but maybe taking a break might help? I mean, when I was conflicted with someone; I decided to back off and see other people to see what would happen. And for me it just happened that I wasn’t as invested in the person as I thought I was. I didn’t miss them, and I didn’t go on dates thinking it was a mistake. I don’t know if it would work the same for you but maybe try it? If she’s still on your mind then you kind of know whether you’re invested or not. And if you are; can you handle her job?”

Tomoe took a swig of her coffee and sat with a puzzled look. She had a lot to consider.


	5. Blossom and Withering

Ran felt like a little schoolgirl; waiting for her date to arrive.

She had her doubts about wanting to open up this way to anyone, but whether it was by chance or fate she met Tomoe she just knew that this was the chance to take a leap. Her other friends had and it had worked so well for them. And now she wanted what they had.

She could see her standing at the desk; engaging in a conversation with Nanami, who was trying to make her stay there a little longer. She closed the door gently as not to out herself as peeping, and shuffled to go and sit on her bed. She stumbled as she stood on her robe on the way; and she merely brushed herself off and sat down on the end.

“Getting a bit excited are we?” Cooed a voice behind her.

“Shush.” She responded to her guest; noticing Tomoe opening the door and coming in casually.

She closed the door but made no motion to move from her spot. She was a bit put off by seeing three girls in the room this time instead of just her usual one.

“Uh, I didn’t get my wires crossed right? You wanted me to come tonight yeah?” She stated, watching her friend get off the bed with a smile and move over to her.

“Yes, you were right. But I just wasn’t transparent about what was happening.” She grabbed Tomoe’s hand and guided her over to the love bed, and gestured for her to take a seat. “I felt really warm by meeting your friends last night that I wanted you to meet mine properly. Well, most of them. Moca couldn’t get a babysitter tonight.

“But you know Honey, well, Chisato already.” She gestured to the familiar blonde to her left. “And this is Lisa; Moca’s wife.”

Lisa shuffled forward and held out a hand. “Nice to meet you. You’re very charming to look at; I can see why Ran has kept you all to herself.”

Tomoe took her hand and noticed the ring on her finger; huge and covered in diamonds. “Nice to meet you. Ran has told me a bit about you.”

“Sorry if this was a bit of a surprise.” Ran finally came to join them; Tomoe now in the middle of them and going pink. “I’m no cook but the master has stellar taste in food so she’s gotten stuff made for us.”

“Oh? Dinner with three hot women? How can I say no to that?” Tomoe relaxed and grabbed onto Ran’s hand on instinct.

…

“Yes, I caved and agreed to a date in the end.” Chisato rolled her eyes and gestured with her wine glass. “I was skeptical at first; we used to be friends as children then her family moved away. She claims she’s been looking for me for years. She didn’t touch her phone during the date though.”

“Wow, maybe it’s your turn to get your happy ending.” Lisa gave a giggle. “Moca got pretty persistent the more I pulled back. Seems to work a treat.”

Tomoe noticed that Ran was merely looking between her friends, but something was odd about her gaze. It was almost a longing look rather than curiousity or awe of them.

“And now she’s just a housewife and is cool with you here?” Tomoe asked. “I’m actually curious how she doesn’t get jealous or concerned with you.”

“Oh, no she does get jealous.” Lisa flicked a finger knowingly. “She just tells me how she feels and I make it up to her by loving her the way she deserves. Mind you, I’ve considered leaving a few times. The money is just really good and the sooner we can pay off our debt the better.”

“So does she work too?”

“Mhm, IT. But she works from home to look after the kids. They’re not quite old enough to go into any form of daycare.” She then gave a grin. “Hey, if you’re ever looking for that second job…”

“I’ll consider it.” Tomoe gave a chuckle. “Kids are my life after all; so it wouldn’t be painful.”

“It wont be the kids that are painful.” Ran shook her head. “Moca is the handful.”

“She is, but she’s my squishy, cuddly handful.”

Chisato checked her phone, and rolled her eyes. Ran leant over and raised her brows at the screen. “Wow, Kaoru just sent a nude. Damn you’re lucky.”

Tomoe felt red at the notion of Ran looking at another woman’s body in front of her. Which was silly because she’s seen plenty of women’s body with her job. But maybe because it was someone else’s date that made her a bit more flushed at it.

Ran seemed to notice; she crawled over and dared to kiss her infront of the girls. “Don’t worry, I think your body is the best I’ve seen in my lifetime. I’m very lucky to have you to myself.”

“This was fun, but I think it’s time we both left.” Chisato slid up from her seat and placed her glass on the makeshift table with the rest of the dishes. “I am going to go and get me some purple lemonade and regret it in the morning. Have fun.”

“Oh, it’s you we should be saying that too.” Lisa laughed as she got up too. “You know deep down you love it a lot more than you’re leading on. But I too, have my own little squeeze messaging me to go give them some sugar. Have a good rest of the night guys.”

They both excused themselves; and Ran proceeded to kiss Tomoe a bit more passionately. Once she broke away, she giggled nervously. “Thankyou for entertaining them.”

“No no, thankyou for letting me into that part of your life.” Tomoe grabbed her arms and kissed her forehead gently. “It’s a big thing to do.”

She laid down and gestured for Ran to join her. “And really? We don’t always have to sleep together when we meet. We’re friends right?”

“Right.” Ran laid down beside her and put a hand on her chest. “I enjoyed the last two nights. It’s nice to be a bit normal.”

“It is…” Tomoe trailed off, biting her lip. “Speaking of; I might need to focus on getting my job sorted. Like, every waking moment sorted. Tsugumi read my proposal and she quite frankly said it sucks and I need to rewrite most of it.”

“Oh that sucks. Isn’t it due in like two weeks?”

“Yeah it is. Honestly hate doing it but I know if I don’t I’ll regret it immensely.” Tomoe gave a sigh. “So I might just need to pull back on pretty much anything social for a bit.”

“I understand.” Ran didn’t look at Tomoe. “Can I still text you?”

“Yeah, yeah of course. I’m not gonna go completely off the radar.” She chuckled and gave Ran a cuddle of reassurance.

But she instantly regretted the words leaving her mouth.

…

Tomoe spent the morning re-typing everything Tsugumi had highlighted in red (there was a lot of red in her document) and had jotted down some key words and sentences to replace it all with on a pad. Coffee in the biggest mug they owned, and a dating app open on her phone.

She kind of regretted the dating app part.

It went off every few seconds; another match, instant messages, more matches and some even sending multiple messages at once. Only a couple were so far worth speaking to.

One in particular seemed to stand out as fairly normal. She took her time to respond; and was the only one to not comment on her body or face. If anything it was like having a casual conversation with a friend.

So Tomoe decided to ask if she wanted to meet up; to which she agreed on a casual dinner for that night. They arranged the meeting, and then she went back to work. She checked every so often, but no one else interesting.

Then her eyes wandered to the text message app; it was blank. Truthfully she hadn’t sent Ran a message in a few days, but then again she hadn’t gotten one either. But it was only a few days; still too early to decide if her attachment was real or not.

Her phone went off again. Another match with another normal girl. She then wondered why she had never decided to try this in the first place. Then again a lot of the matches she soon blocked; they were all just wanting a fuck buddy. And really if she wanted that she had someone to go back to.

So she made arrangements with this other woman for a couple of days later, and went back to work. She took a swig of coffee and finalised the first page. Maybe she would be able to finish it today if she kept on with it.

Her phone went off a few times. And then she decided that after arranging another few dates throughout the week; her phone was going off.

And then there was silence. And she sighed in relief before getting back to it and focusing hard on making her proposal worth every waking moment of her days.

She was definitely going to delete the app once she was clear about her job.

…

It had been almost two weeks.

Ran had opted to wait before texting; because she knew that Tomoe had her own life to sort out. But it didn’t mean that she didn’t think about her from the moment she woke up til the moment she went to bed. Hell she was even focusing on her when her clients came in. And the hour she allocated at the end of the nights was getting very lonely and empty.

She broke down this particular night. And through blurry eyes she decided to send a message and just test the waters.

And then she curled up on her bed and sighed as she flicked through her phone. She watched some porn. She read a few conspiracy theories and then decided to watch some nicer videos before getting bored. And her thoughts just made her more upset. She was getting that fear that she had maybe jumped the gun with Tomoe and now she was being ghosted. She had honestly tried to send the signs that she didn’t just see her as a client, but then she considered their discussion of how hard it was for her to date with the job.

She decided to text another number; and then she couldn’t hold it in anymore.

She began to sob uncontrollably; right as a tall, dark haired woman opened her door and found her in the current state. Instantly she bustled over and sat down beside her; stroking her hair.

“I’m here my dear, what’s going on?” Her voice was low and sultry, but seemed like she could be dangerous.

“I’m sorry master, I just wanted to rediscuss my arrangement.” Ran tried to control her tears as she wiped her eyes gently as not to smudge her makeup. “I-I don’t think that I’ll need the hour free anymore. I don’t think my regular will be coming anymore.”

“Oh dear; why didn’t you say this to me earlier?” She moved a hand down to rub her back. “You know you’ve been working so hard for me and I was honestly getting concerned when Touko and Nanami informed me your regular hadn’t come in a bit. Would you like to take a few days off?”

“Oh, no I couldn’t do that.” Ran sniffed. “I think I need to keep working so I can get distracted.”

“You can’t work like this, and I wont allow it. It’s not healthy at all.” She moved closer to hug her tightly. “Besides, your extra work has brought in enough for you to take a month off if you chose to. And I think we need you to go back to normal. But I am insisting you take a week off. No arguments.”

Ran nodded a few times. “Okay, I’ll do that. If you’re that insistent on it then I’ll take it.”

“You really liked this one didn’t you?” The other woman preened her side fringe infront of her left eye.

“I’ve never felt this way about anyone before. I kept looking at Lisa and now Chisato and thought that I had finally found someone myself. I thought she was going to save me.”

“Save you from what dear?”

“Myself.”

…

Tomoe blew a whistle as her class was stretching. She could feel the lingering eyes of the principal observing her lesson. It was D day; and she couldn’t have anything go wrong in this situation. This class decided if she had written complete garbage in her proposal, or if she was providing what she claimed she could.

“Alright class, Today we want to work on your endurance; and both upper and lower body strength.” Tomoe flexed her arm as she spoke, and she ignored the usual one that tried to get her attention. “Climbing seems mundane; but the notion of having to have all your limbs working together to get you to the top will do a lot of good in the long run.”

“What do we get if we reach the top miss?” And it began.

Tomoe placed her hands in response and tapped her foot. “The satisfaction of knowing you’re doing wonders for your body. Hell I might even have gold star stickers to give you if you like. But you have to touch the roof; and come down in one piece.”

“Is there a chance we could hurt ourselves as we fall off?” A quiet girl asked.

“Absolutely not. That’s what these huge mattress looking things are for. They’re fall mats.” Tomoe pointed to the huge pad under the rope. “It’s designed so even if you catapult yourself off you wont miss it.”

The silence was interrupted by Tomoe’s phone ringing. Everyone snapped their attention to her fully, and she stopped in her wake.

“Miss, your phone is ringing.” One girl pointed out; like it wasn’t already obvious.

Tomoe moved to her back pocket and clicked the side button to hang up on whoever it was. “And as you can see, just because I have it does not mean I have the right to answer it. When is it? When this class is finished and I’m on my break. And that’s why teachers get annoyed if you sneak yours into class. So I hope that this is a lesson to please respect the attention of your peers. Got it?”

“Got it.” The response was thankfully uniform.

“Alrighty, so who is gonna go first?”

…

Tomoe checked her phone after class. Seemed like one of the women she had matched with. There was a barrage of texts shortly after about how she looked forward to their date in a week and she apologised if the call seemed out of turn. She quickly responded before pocketing it once more and cleaning up the gym equipment.

“A nice display Miss Udagawa. When you’re done, will you accompany me in my office?” The voice of the principal came from behind her as she flicked the pad into the corner of the gym.

“Of course, lead the way.”

They both stalked down the hall; Tomoe was getting nervous. She hoped that her phone call hadn’t sealed her fate.

They both went into the office; Tomoe taking a seat in the guest chair and the principle sitting at her desk. Her proposal was on the desk; aswell as another stack of paper she figured was the other teacher’s.

“So your class was an eye opener.” She started with, gesturing to the paper. “Quite frankly, I was impressed with how responsive the class is to you. Not one of them made a means to question your authority. It was endearing.”

“Well, thank you. I was just doing what I did at my previous school.” Tomoe responded. “I’ll just remember in future to put my phone on silent.”

“Of course; it’s the first time I’ve seen a teacher honestly ignore it. So it wouldn’t go against you anyway. But I wanted to commend you on using it as lesson also. Something the other teacher has failed to do on multiple occasions.” She then grabbed the stack of paper, and handed it to her. “So I would like to congratulate you on getting the contract. I have seen firsthand that our students will be in very good hands. Only condition is we require you to do a music class on Friday since the other teacher also had that contract. The fact you mentioned drum playing as a teenager helped plenty.”

Tomoe was gobsmacked, but then her eyes lit up. This was it; this is what she was waiting for. “Thankyou so much! You honestly don’t understand how much this means to me. I don’t know what else to say.”

“Just keep teaching the way you do and that will be thanks enough.”

…

Tomoe couldn’t contain herself once she left for the day. She rushed to the shops to go and seek out the best fresh vegetables and meats she could find. She was going to force Himari and Tsugumi to celebrate with her. Finally she had some form of stability in her life.

“Oh, Tomoe!” She looked up to see one of the women she had gone on a date with the previous week coming over to her. “Fancy seeing you here.”

“Lucy, hey.” She casually responded, feeling a bit awkward. They hadn’t spoken since the date and the awkward moment where she shook her hand good night and fled. “How’s it going?”

“Good good.” She suddenly bit her lip. “Sorry I never got back to you. I kind of figured that you didn’t enjoy yourself so I left it as it is.”

“I honestly don’t blame you. I apologise for being awkward as hell.” She reached out and touched her arm in sympathy. “It was indeed a nice night, but I think I wasn’t a good fit for you in the end.”

She thought she had seen someone staring at her, but when she looked there was nothing. She dropped her arm and focused her attention back on the woman.

“Yeah, honestly there wasn’t a spark so to speak. Which happens with people.” She looked over and gave a wave to a boyish looking woman seemingly looking around for her. “That’s my spark. We met shortly after and hit it off straight away.”

“That’s good, I’m really happy for you.” She grinned in response. “I deleted the app. I don’t think I’m ready to date just now. Too hectic. But you know, still have one date tomorrow that I’d feel bad bailing from.”

“I know what you mean. But it’s fine. You do you and you’ll know when you’re ready for it.” She gave a wave. “Nice seeing you, and I’m glad we can leave on a civil footing.”

“Same, take care.” Tomoe waved her and the girlfriend off, and sighed before continuing her shopping trip.

She once again felt that empty feeling.


	6. Resolution

Tomoe was sitting on her bed after her second last date she had bothered to organise for the month; staring down in disbelief. She had a message seemingly sitting in her inbox for two days, yet the app itself had never worked to notify her phone it was sitting there. She clicked on it to see ‘Bae’ still in her phone; with a text from a time where she would usually be with her.

Instantly she felt horrible. This whole month she had honestly regretted just about every other woman she had spoken to or taken out. She had made herself out to be a weirdo to avoid invitations into their homes or even to kiss them. She just couldn’t get Ran off her mind; and she was certain her housemates were sick of hearing about her.

Their contact had been severely strained; and Tomoe instantly hated herself for it. She was that guy; got what she wanted then moved on to the next thing. Only she was sure that she was going to go back to her. Or well, maybe it wasn’t such a good idea given she had an unread text message two days old. Then again she figured that having Ran’s thighs around her neck and breaking it would be a good way to go…

She decided to text to see if it was okay to call. Which she didn’t really expect to get a response to but it was almost instantly when she did.

“Hey.” She started, receiving silence in response. “I figured ringing to apologise is a lot better than texting. I honestly didn’t get notification from your text and I feel so bad I never saw it to get back to you.”

_“It’s okay. I didn’t expect you to text back straight away. You said you were busy.”_ Ran’s tone seemed seeded with disappointment.

“It’s really not okay. We’re supposed to be friends and here I am just sleeping and working without a thought for anyone else.” Tomoe could imagine that face in her mind, and she instantly felt bad even doing this. “Are you okay? You’re not sick or anything are you?”

_“Kind of, I have the week off._ ” There was silence for a moment. _“I miss you.”_

And there it was. “I miss you too. I feel terrible about this month; honestly.”

_“Can you tell me one thing?”_ Tomoe held her breath, and wanted to cry when she heard the question that followed. _“Have you been seeing other women and that’s why you didn’t want to see me?”_

“…Yes and no. I have been seeing other women, but it wasn’t to avoid you. My insecurities made me avoid you. I’m sorry.”

She was met with the sound of the engaged tone; hung up on. “Fuck!” She threw her phone onto her carpet and gripped at her hair. “How could I be so fucking stupid?!”

“Hey, why’re you yelling?” Himari poked her head around the corner to see her friend stressed and pacing in her bedroom. “Is everything alright?”

“No, it’s not. I’ve fucked up everything.” She finally sighed and sat down. “I rang Ran.”

“Oh, I see. And?” Himari moved in to sit next to her for support.

“She said it. She said she missed me. And then I admitted I was seeing other women. So I’ve single handedly ruined my love life forever.”

“Oh dear…” Himari bit her lip and looked at her phone. “Go to her?”

There was a knock at the door and they both jumped. “Shit, it’s the date I had tonight. I think it’s the crazy one ringing me all week.”

“…do you have to go? I can tell her you’re suddenly sick or something?”

Tomoe shook her head and scooped her phone up as she stood. “I’ve already lied to one person and it’s bitten me, I’ll just have to grin and bear it.”

“Just know if she gets too much you can text me. I’ll ring so you have an excuse to leave.”

“I will absolutely keep that in mind.” Tomoe flicked a jacket on and gave a sigh. “And while she’s talking I can think about how the fuck I’m going to apologise to the one I should’ve been with.”

Himari watched as her friend left the room, and she started to feel bad for even suggesting this in the first place.

…

She regretted even giving her the time of day after all that had happened. And now she was wiping her face as she ran back towards the club. She couldn’t stay at her house after that phonecall. She had figured that the chance meeting at the food shops was just Tomoe running into an old friend. And she just lied to herself in thinking she was imagining that she had overheard Tomoe talking about dating other women.

But she had gotten the confirmation straight from the source without any hesitation; and now she regretted everything. Regretted shifting her entire life for her. Regretting letting her know deep rooted secrets. Regretted letting her into her friend circle. And most of all regretted ever letting herself believe she could have that happy ending she’s wanted for years.

She stumbled through the front door and Touko jumped at the sound before grabbing the reception phone instantly. “Yeah Rui she’s come back, you need to get her out of here.”

The end door of the hall flung open and the owner stalked down as quickly as her outfit allowed her. She instantly swooped in to grab her sobbing staff member and helped her back down to the room she had come from. She sat her down in the seat, closed the door and handed her tissues before sitting down in her chair opposite her desk.

“Why did you come back to work? I thought I said to take a break?” She said softly.

“I couldn’t…I can’t deal with being alone.” Ran managed to utter, pulling a tissue out and dabbing her eyes. “She called me and I couldn’t handle it. She lied to me.”

“I’m sorry you had to deal with that alone.” Rui sighed. “Have you been in personal contact with her lately?”

Ran nodded and opened the text conversation; shamefully seeing photos they had shared before the contact became strained and handed her phone over to Rui. She took it gently; and had it down behind the desk for a few long and lingering moments before handing it back.

“If you would like to stay here to feel better you can chill out in your room. We’ll bring you some food and some wine to have okay? I’ll organise for Lisa to finish up earlier to take you home. I don’t feel comfortable with you being by yourself given the circumstances.”

Ran gave a nod and they both stood and exited the office; Rui opened door eight with her master key and allowed Ran to go in. The toy wall was covered in velvet and her robe was locked. A clear sign that there was no intentions of her working regardless.

“I’ll come back in a little while to check up on you okay? Touko will bring you some refreshments.” Rui smiled as she closed the door, before her face went extremely stony as she stalked down the hall to the front.

“No one comes to my garden, destroys it and gets away with it.”

…

Tomoe wanted to die.

This woman was crazy. And she couldn’t even reach for her phone to text Himari to get an escape; their phones were put face up on the table so they weren’t allowed to use them because all the attention could stay on each other. Any move towards her phone and she was questioned aggressively. No wonder this woman was so insistent with calls and texts; she was making it clear she wasn’t going without a fight.

But Tomoe wanted nothing more than to have something; anything to ruin this date. Well, if she could even call it a date.

“So I think that we’re really great for each other. Yin and Yang. So to talk about the future now doesn’t seem so crazy right?” The woman giggled after her sentence, and seemingly staring holes into Tomoe’s eyes to make sure she wasn’t looking at anyone else.

_Oh no, it’s absolutely crazy just like you._ Tomoe merely smiled outwardly instead of saying something that might end up with a butterknife through her neck.

Suddenly, her phone began to vibrate; and she was almost expecting her date to throw it away. Instead she joined in looking at the number; which was coming up as a random number.

“Next date lined up?” She attempted humour but it was more of a dare to answer with that.

“Nah, my housemate using another phone while hers gets fixed.” She didn’t even feel bad lying to her. “She wasn’t feeling well as you arrived so I said to call me if anything happens.”

“Ah that sucks.” The phone stopped ringing, and the woman seemed satisfied.

Then it called again. “Okay, I’m sorry. I’ll be quick to take this and make sure she’s okay.”

Tomoe didn’t wait for a response before swiping it up and dashing to the bathroom. Soon after she answered the phone.

“Hello? Tomoe speaking.”

_“Good, I have the right number.”_ Tomoe didn’t recognise the voice, but it sent chills down her spine. _“Do you think what you’ve done to my precious Widow is funny?”_

“I don’t follow, I’m sorry.” She knew exactly who she was on the phone to, and it terrified her to think Ran’s boss had her number.

_“Did it feel good? Having her heart in your hands only to drop it in front of her and stomp all over it? Got what you wanted until something better came along?”_

“Actually to be honest; I wish I could take this month ba-“

_“I will only say this to you once and once only. If you fail to come by the club and fix what you have destroyed by midnight, I will make sure that your life becomes a living hell. I’m sure your job would appreciate knowing their staff has sent questionable content freely.”_

Tomoe felt her blood run cold as for the second time that night she was hung up on. Suddenly she panicked and checked her clock. Ten thirty. There was still time to wrap things up civilly and get there before she was done for. She took the time to text Himari to call in thirty before leaving the bathroom.

She sauntered back to her seat and smiled apologetically. “Sorry about that; she couldn’t find the painkillers so I just talked her through where I put them away.”

“It’s fine! I asked for the bill in the meantime so we can go back to mine.”

Tomoe felt like screaming.

…

“I had a really good time.” The woman said in that tone of offering her house.

Tomoe stood and nodded a few times. “Me too. It was nice.” She tapped her pocket hoping for Himari to ring her.

“well…?” She gestured with her head. “Are you going to come in?”

And then her phone went off and she had to hold her relief in. “Sorry. Hey…what? Well are you alright?...You might need hospital?!...Don’t worry, I’ll be there soon!

“I am so sorry but she’s no good, but thanks for tonight!” She turned and sprinted down the street; hearing a faint ‘call me!’ as she high tailed out of there.

She estimated they had walked twenty minutes in the opposite direction to her apartment. Meaning that it would be cutting it so fine to midnight that if she stopped running now she wouldn’t make it. But she was a gym teacher; so this should be easy to get there at the pace she was going.

What she didn’t count on was leaping up the stairs and bursting through the door after her stint would drain her completely, and she fell to her knees heaving. She had miscalculated the distance drastically.

“Uh…did you want a drink? An oxygen tank? Ambulance maybe?” Touko suggested.

Tomoe shook her head a few times and focused on controlling her breathing. “Time….what time…”

“It’s five past midnight.”

“Okay, I’m late so I’m…Ran. I need Ran.” She finally got up to her feet and stood in place as all the blood started rushing downwards.

“Her room should be open, but I don-“ Touko stopped as she watched the woman stagger down the hall. “Oh yeah I’m not gonna stop that.”

Tomoe leant on the door as she opened it, and forgot to remove her body as it swung open and she hit the floor in her wake. Ran cried out in shock and leapt up on her bed, before settling down on her knees and watching Tomoe hoist herself up with her hands and close the door.

“What are you doing he-“

“I fucked up.” Tomoe blurted out, cutting Ran off so she could say her speech she had planned all night. “I can’t stop thinking about you but I doubted my own ability and jealousy to handle your job. So I took up advice to go on dates and honestly I’ve never been so miserable in my life.”

Ran adjusted herself so she was sitting on the edge of the bed and looked at her patiently.

“I never should’ve let myself doubt you, doubt us as a dynamic.” Tomoe moved closer, arms by her side to show she was staying as open as possible. “It’s you. It’s always been you and I hope that what I’ve done isn’t going to ruin that. I don’t think I can honestly keep going without you with me.”

Ran breathed hard, and looked down at the floor for a moment. “It hurt. And I’m sure that some things I said and did helped that doubt form. But it still hurt.”

“I know. Trust me I know.” Tomoe shuffled over completely now, looking down on her. “But I’m here now to make it right. I don’t know how much I have to do, but I’m willing to do it all. But it’s up to you. If you want me to go, I’ll leave and never bother you again. But if you want me to stay, then I’ll stay forever.”

Ran looked back up at Tomoe, eyes glassy at the response. She said nothing, but stood up slowly. Tomoe braced for the door to be opened and being thrown out; but the thoughts died instantly as she felt arms wrap around her waist and hot breath on her lips.

She dared to push her head forward and began to kiss Ran harder than normal; she felt her kiss back and her heart began to leap from her chest. So much she gripped her hips and pulled her in close before patting her thigh impatiently. Ran broke the kiss to grab her shoulders and leap up to be caught and carried to the bed. Tomoe dropped her down and followed quickly to kiss her again and rub her thigh. Ran moaned and began to gently push at Tomoe’s shoulder.

“Roll over.” She said in a demanding tone, to which Tomoe complied and rolled onto her back. Ran instead got up and walked over to her wall.

“Oh, you don’t need to do that.” She stated, sitting up and watching as Ran grabbed the strap they used the first time. However, she came back and dropped it into her lap and began to take her dress off.

Tomoe understood where she was going, kind of. But she followed suit to strip her pants and dress shirt off; and awkwardly turn away as she worked out how to wear it herself. Once she figured that she was secured in, she turned around to see Ran completely naked and holding her arms out to her. Tomoe shuffled over and leant down to kiss her softly.

“Be my first?” Ran asked softly; stroking Tomoe’s cheek.

“Wait, are you serious?” She was surprised, but happy when the nod followed. She felt like the experience was going to be a lot more sentimental that way; and she smiled. “I’ll make sure I’ll be your last too then.”

She lifted herself up to lean over the other woman; and began to kiss and suck on her neck, listening to the mewling coming from her lover who was running her nails across her shoulders. Her dominant hand was rubbing between her legs gently; feeling around until she felt it was wet enough before positioning herself and holding the strap to her entrance. No words spoken; but a smile instead as she mimicked their first time together.

Ran’s face being pulled into a wave of pleasure was something Tomoe dreamed of seeing; and now she was finally experiencing it and it was unlike anything she could’ve dreamed of. She leant down to kiss her cheek; lowering herself so their bodies were pressed against each other and Tomoe could focus on her hip thrusting more. Ran gave a soft cry out as Tomoe linked their hands and placed them above her head; still kissing and nipping at her neck as she kept going.

She could feel the softness of Ran’s chest squashed against her bonier frame; and she began to pant in her ear and quickened the pace to get her in the mood. The panting worked a treat as the cries became louder; and turned to pleading.

It was everything Tomoe had ever wanted all month.

She took the enthusiasm as a means to slam into her as hard as possible; rolling her hips as she dove in and Ran’s pleads began to lose all meaning. She almost screamed and arched her back and Tomoe figured she had hit her sweet spot; so she tried and was successful again. And again. And then once more before Ran actually screamed and became to twitch uncontrollably.

Tomoe slowed down; and stopped to pushed her hips all the way while biting down on her neck to finish.

…

She wasn’t sure how long they were laying there for; but being able to hold her and rub her face into the silky black locks made her feel whole. It had been a long night; they had done it multiple times and every time was like they had done it for the first time all over again.

But Ran was spent. And had fallen asleep after their fourth round. Which Tomoe didn’t mind; because they had plenty of time to do that all over again. All that mattered that she had her in this way and she was the only one.

Tomoe kissed her shoulder gently and nudged her. “Hey, we should probably get you home so you can sleep properly.”

Ran breathed in as she woke and looked over her shoulder. “Yeah, good idea.” She then sat up slowly and stretched her arms. “Are you coming with me?”

Tomoe sat up and shuffled to grab her and kiss her shoulder in an almost possessive manner. “Of course I am. There’s no way I’m leaving you after everything that’s gone on.”

Ran leant back to kiss Tomoe’s crown before slapping her hands gently so she could get dressed. Once they were both reclothed and had packed her room away, they left it hand in hand. Ran stopped at one of the front doors and gave a couple of knocks. Shortly after; a random woman left the room and went to reception to pay. Lisa then put her head out and gave a smile. “Gimme five to get changed ok-hang on. When did you get here?”

Tomoe shrugged. “Since midnight. It’s okay. I came to my senses.”

“Good! Chirst we were worried about you for a while.”

“Agreed.” Chisato’s voice rang out from her room; a second head poking out and Tomoe almost double took at how beautiful she was. It was Chisato’s new squeeze. “Wait for us too.”

Tomoe pulled Ran in and buried her face into her hair again. “Do you all live near each other?”

“Same building. Same floor. I own it.” She pulled away to see a shocked face staring back at her. She giggled. “And now you know why none of us want to leave here.”

Lisa came out seeming completely normal; Chisato and her friend shortly after and they made their leave. Nanami had taken over the desk and waved them all off.

The other three walked ahead of Tomoe and Ran; who had their hands linked as they walked casually. Ran then screwed her face up. “Are you absolutely sure that my job is okay? Will you be okay with that?”

Tomoe nodded. “As long as I’m the only one allowed to make love to you; I’ll deal with the rest myself. And besides, this is your family. I couldn’t ever make you choose me over that.”

“You’re the first one to consider us as family.”

“It’s about everything that happened. The dinner was a huge eye opener; Lisa put it into perspective with how she deals with Moca about it. And the way your boss was willing to go out of her way to make sure you were fine?”

Ran stopped. “Wait, how did you know about that?”

Tomoe froze and bit her lip before looking her in the eye. “What if I told you that she unintentionally saved me from a crazy woman trying to force me to stay the night after a disaster of a dinner.”

“Would you have come to me even if she didn’t?” Ran seemed to get a little defensive; as if worried about the answer.

“Trust me; if she didn’t kill me I would’ve done everything in my power to come to you. Just not as early as I did.”

“She ran for you.” Chisato gave a grin as she looked back. “Literally leapt up the staircase and blasted through the door. Touko thought she was going to have a heart attack.”

Ran and Tomoe began walking again, Ran with a huge smile on her face.

They all trudged up the stairs, and the top floor had three doors. Chisato and her date bid their farewell and moved to open one door, and the other two moved around the stairwell to a second door opposite Chisato’s. Lisa unlocked it quietly and gave a wave before closing it ever so gently.

“This one.” Ran gestured to the third door on the back wall. She opened it and let Tomoe walk in first.

It was a huge bachelorette pad. Everything was big in it; big kitchen, big table, big living space in a big floor space. She looked around in awe because this was where she lavished with her spending habits. Everything was some form of plush; soft looking and Tomoe opted to place her phone and keys on the bench.

“Do you want a drink before we head to bed?” Ran asked softly. Tomoe shook her head. “Okay, follow me. And don’t ask but I have some clothes that will fit you to sleep in.”

“I’ll be optimistic in thinking you got given them ages ago and kept them for when I came along, right?” Tomoe avoided a slap to her arm with a chuckle.

She stopped and gasped in awe at the room. It was decorated in crimson and gold; with black furniture with gold finishes. The bed was four poster; dark redwood and red chiffon drapes to match velvet crimson bedding.

“I’m almost offended you’ve never invited me here before.” Tomoe moved over to Ran; who was opening a dresser full of clothing for her.

“Well, be thankful you’re the only one I’ve brought back before.” She gripped her chin and gave her a kiss. “Shower first then we can sleep?”

Tomoe grinned and went back for another few kisses.


	7. End of the Show

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for sticking around for this!  
> Now I can go finish the fluff I had started as a palette cleanser for everyone. Hope you enjoyed

_Beep Beep_.

Tomoe groaned and pulled her arms toward her body; feeling warmth and softness pressing into her body, followed by a smaller groan.

_Beep beep._

She suddenly shot up; breathing in hard and battling to open her eyes. Her eyes were open a tiny slither; attempting to peer through red tassels. Which upon brushing it all back was her hair over her face.

_Beep beep._

She got out of bed and shuffled out, moving towards the kitchen to find her phone vibrating to the beeping along the bench. And her eyes opened more to find she wasn’t at home. She snatched it up and answered it as best she could.

“…’lo?” Her voice was so hoarse.

_“Tomoe! Thank god you answered this time. Where are you?!”_

“Himari?” Tomoe looked around; her focus coming back to the lavish apartment she had stayed at. “I just woke up. Long night. I’m with Ran.”

_“We did figure but we’ve been ringing since nine just in case. Waking up to find you not there hasn’t happened in a while and when you didn’t show up after the emergency call we figured that’s where you went. Is the club still open then?”_

Tomoe looked at the microwave in the corner to read it was almost ten thirty. “Oh, no. I’m at her house. Long story; will tell you when I get home. I think I’ll stay longer to get sleep though; I’m exhausted.”

_“You sound it too. And at her house? I mean three guesses what happened; but yeah, go back to sleep and we’ll see you for dinner. Tsugu and I are going out with Sayo and Rinko so no rush to come back! Enjoy.”_

“You too. Catcha.” She hung her mobile up, made sure it was on silent and then shuffled back to the bedroom.

There she saw the nicest scene she had ever seen. Ran was curled up in the sheets; her hair curling around her face, and her breath was soft. Her fists were gripping the velvet and clasped in front of her nose.

Tomoe smiled softly, shuffling back over and sliding back in behind her and placing her arms back around her. She was amazed she didn’t wake her up before.

The thought was short lived as Ran stretched out with a yawn, and awkwardly shuffled around so their eyes met. She had a smile on her face though and leant in for a gentle peck on the lips. “Are you okay?”

“Yeah, it was my phone. Himari got worried when I didn’t show up home.” Tomoe pulled her in closer to kiss her forehead. “Sorry if I woke you; but I’m ready to go back to sleep.”

“It’s fine, better you answer it now and then there’s more time to sleep.” Ran gripped her chin and kissed her harder. “I’m game to stay here all day if you are. I’ll be honest, you almost ruined me last night.”

“That good?” Tomoe almost seemed impressed by the statement.

Ran nodded and shuffled closer; running her fingers down Tomoe’s neck gently. “Really good. Definitely above any expectations I think I had.”

Tomoe kissed her once more; pulling her as close as they possibly could before something got in the way of them, and stroked her waist gently. “Well, we can always do it next week. Now at either home instead of your work. I doubt with us now coming there isn’t really appropriate.”

Ran shook her head. “No it wouldn’t. Moca doesn’t come by choice but Rui does discourage us from inviting official partners just so its less messy. On the offchance they come when a client leaves their room; you know all that.”

Tomoe felt her face go a little hot, but nodded. “Yeah that’s fair. Least I can take comfort in the fact that at the end of it all you’re coming home to me.”

“Yes, because I do too.”

…

Tomoe sat at her desk at work a few weeks later; she had given the class an anatomy test so she was on her laptop deciding what she could teach them the next week. However there was a tapping near the door that she couldn’t tune out.

“Miss? There’s a really hot girl at the door.” One of the students pointed out.

Tomoe looked up to see all the class looking at the door, and then looking to see Ran standing and staring at her with a grin. Tomoe got up quickly and waved the class with her hand before leaning on the doorframe to cut the students’ line of sight off her woman.

“What are you doing here? How did you get in?” She questioned with folded arms. “I thought you were going food shopping today?”

“I am, but I decided to try and be a semi normal girlfriend and bring you your lunch.” She had a bag in her hand with a container sitting in. “Himari couldn’t get hold of you so she rang me instead to do a drop off.”

“Well aren’t you sweet.” Tomoe gave a smile and took the bag. “I didn’t even notice I had forgotten it. And no, I didn’t do it on purpose just to see you, but it’s nice.”

“In any case, I sweet talked your boss into letting me come visit in future if it happens again. And then commended me on keeping your head screwed the right way on so you’re welcome.”

“Well aren’t I lucky then?” She leant down and gave her a peck on the cheek sneakily. “I’ll see you after my work?”

“I’ll see you then. I’ll be waiting in the special position.” Ran winked and stalked down the hall like the small goddess she was to her woman.

Tomoe shuffled back to her desk; and everyone in the class had stopped their assessment to stare in curiousity. All except the one that had tried to hit on her up until this point.

“Can I help you all?” She said as she placed the bag on her desk and raised a brow.

“Who was that?” One girl asked; her hands cupping her chin. “I can’t believe someone that beautiful exists.”

Tomoe gave a chuckle and shook her head. “Honestly I didn’t either til I met her. She’s my partner of a month.”

Immediately full attention was on her. The girl spoke again. “Please, tell us your secrets to dating someone like that.”

Tomoe finally laughed and agreed.

…

“ngh, please…I can’t wait anymore.”

“You sound like you could wait a little bit longer.” Tomoe licked the shell of Ran’s ear and held her chin up from the bed to stare into the mirror before them.

They were in a position where Ran was on her stomach; strap pressed against her entrance and Tomoe looming over her body; one arm linked under to grip her chin and neck; the other clamped over her lover’s hand on the sheets.

Rose eyes snapped open to see their positions; and the pressure on her body was getting hard to stand anymore. “For fuck sake if it’s not in me in three I’ll push back and fuck myself while you kneel over me like a fucking idiot.”

“Oh, yeah I can see why you’re the fan favourite at work.” Tomoe chuckled as she finally pushed in to shut her lover up.

Ran gave a groan in response as she felt Tomoe’s hips pressed up against her butt and didn’t really hold still as long as she usually would. She had a new mission and wanted to achieve it. She was already thrusting at a slow place; still firmly grasping her neck and forcing them both to stare into the mirror as they continued on.

Tomoe didn’t go faster; more that she attempted to thrust in a rougher fashion. All the while trying not to grasp at her lover’s neck any harder than she was; finger marks of someone else probably wasn’t a good look for clients to see later tonight.

“Feeling good?” She cooed as she finally let go of Ran’s neck and placed her other hand onto Ran’s matching hand gripping the sheets. She watched as Ran put her head down into the bed and was moaning with every thrust in.

Tomoe watched as Ran’s butt jiggled as her hips slammed against them, and she felt so powerful and a bit of a creep all at once. But she didn’t dare stop because she was at a good rhythm and Ran’s moans were becoming desperate pleas. It never bored her hearing those noises; it was the confirmation she was doing a good job.

She finally began to speed up; making sure she was in a closer proximity so she was pressing it further in and not sliding out too far. Either way Ran was cursing to the moon and back and she honestly wished that they had time to switch after this. But this was a sleep aide since Ran had run out of her sleeping pills and Tomoe promised to get some after this session.

She gave a few more thrusts; and Ran cried out at the last few. Tomoe pushed against her as far as she could; leaning down to kiss her shoulder as she felt the smaller body shudder beneath her.

“Fuck…” Ran fell limp on the bed; Tomoe pulling out and then removing the device. She moved over and began rubbing Ran’s lower back gently; who seemed to purr from it instead. “I think that will do it.”

“Good, I’m glad. Come here.” She gently helped her tired and sweaty partner up and into the ensuite to shower. Tomoe ran the bath water and helped her sink in. “Lavender bath bomb should help you.”

“Thankyou.” Ran’s voice was becoming lazy, and her eyes were drooping slightly from the adrenaline starting to wear off.

It was just enough to make sure she was clean; Tomoe helped her dry off and place some sleepwear on before tucking her back into bed.

“You have the alarm set yeah?” She asked as she pat Ran’s head gently.

She received a lazy nod in response; to which Tomoe smiled and kissed her forehead. “Good, I’ll go get your pills and something to eat for when you wake up. Just focus on sleeping alright? You got a big night ahead of you from the sounds of it.”

“Tomoe?” Ran lazily cuddled into her bedding and looked at her retreating partner. “Will you come back to bed with me?”

Tomoe smiled and leant her head against the doorframe. “I’ll always come back for you.” 


End file.
